In the Future, Will You Be Selling the Vehicles Buyers Want?
I am not an economist, but tell me if you think this is a problem. Right now, we have an overabundance of vehicle inventory in the U.S. Car sales are slated to decrease after years of constantly increasing sales numbers. At the same time, due to the high prices on
Traditional Advertising Still Brings in the Buyers
Photo: Celebrity spokesperson/Seattle Seahawk Michael Bennett for Larson Automotive in Tacoma, Washington In our increasingly digital world, it’s easy to overlook some of the most effective advertising vehicles for selling cars. Despite the increasing use of pay-per-click, banner advertising, social media, and video ads on the internet, plain old television
Don’t Hide Your Giant Inventory: Show It With a Drone
I remember hearing a story about a car dealer who hired an ad agency to help him make the public aware of his very large selection of vehicles. Although the dealer had his dealership on a high-traffic road and had a huge selection of vehicles, no one knew because he
Dealers and Manufacturers Are Wary: Will Trump Impose Tariff?
With his campaign promise to put a stiff tariff on vehicles manufactured outside of the United States, President Donald Trump has automakers scrambling and dealers worried. The proposed tariff, generally mentioned to be 20%, throws a wrench in auto pricing. If domestic manufacturers move production back to the U.S., they
Time to Register for NADA 2017, Plus Drones to the Rescue!
If you haven’t already, now is the time to make your arrangements to attend the NADA Convention & Expo in New Orleans, January 26–29. If you’re the principal at your dealership, NADA 2017 is a great place to see what direction the auto industry is heading, and to see the
The U.S. Gives Self-Driving Cars the Green Light
If you look into the plans of auto manufacturers, you’ll find that most of them will have driverless cars on the market within two to four years. Recently the U.S. government made it clear it thinks self-driving cars will make the roads safer and more efficient. Certainly, with nearly 40,000
Dealers: Take Your Mobile Website for a Test Drive
C’mon, be honest. When was the last time you went shopping for a car on your own website? Nothing will help you improve the experience for customers more than doing it yourself. More importantly, when was the last time you went shopping on your own site using a smartphone? Although
Service Marketing: Don’t Settle for Just Your Share
If you’ve been in the auto business for any amount of time, you know the service department is an essential part of the dealership’s revenue picture. But many dealers miss the big picture when it comes to this revenue stream. The old way of looking at the service department goes
Play a Math Game: Are You Getting Your Share of the DMA?
I call this game “Calculate how many new vehicles you’ll sell.” It’s kind of a math game. The idea here is for you to figure out how many vehicles you should sell each month based on your Designated Market Area (DMA) and the make of vehicle you sell. The game